1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to removable media, and more particularly to a system and method that generates alerts when a removable medium containing valuable or confidential data is transported outside a predefined boundary.
2. Description of the Related Art
Removable media, such as removable disc, tape, optical or flash memory, are capable of being transported within and beyond the boundaries of an enclosure, such as a building or a room. This has advantages because data can be transported from one stationary computer to another. But the portability of removable media is also an increasing threat for enterprises because removable tape media also allows one to a) steal data and b) introduce undesired data such as viruses.
Current security technologies exist to prevent removable media from being taken outside of an established boundary. Such technology is for example based on video surveillance or other scanning techniques like X-Ray. Often, the carrier has to intentionally take out the removable medium out of a carrying device such as a briefcase or a pocket, and place the removable medium into the hardware for information retrieval. This process is cumbersome and time-consuming, especially if the carrier is already carrying other items. Also, in the case when the carrier intentionally conceals the removable medium and attempts to carry the removable medium outside of a room or building without permission, detection of the removable medium is impossible without his or her consent. In this case, the carrier may easily smuggle the removable medium out of a secured room or building, for example, by concealing the removable medium in his or her pocket.
Personal identification cards also exist where a person inserts a card before entering or exiting a room or building. However, the detection device for these identification cards do not detect whether the person is carrying any removable medium without permission.
Further, conventional security devices consist of local, stand-alone devices for detecting items being smuggled in or out a boundary. For example in shops such security devices are installed at the door to alert the seller if someone smuggles an item inside or outside the shop. These devices might be based on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) where the items have an RFID transponder attached and the security device installed at the door includes a corresponding RFID reader. If an item with said RFID transponder passes the RFID reader included in the security device the security device might send an alert. To date, conventional security technology lacks a central control and tracking system for establishing and determining where removable media may be carried within an enclosure. Thus each security device has to be programmed individually and there is no central control system. In addition traditional security devices installed in shops work in a “all-or-nothing” mode where they send an alert for all items or none, but not for subsets of items.